Parents outraged over lack of communication during lockdown

By kcusanza

Created 02/18/2013 - 6:35pm

Monday, February 18, 2013 - 6:35pm

SPRINGFIELD, LA (NBC33) — Livingston Parish Sheriff's Deputies say they have now arrested Jarred Dotey. Springfield schools were put on lockdown while deputies searched for Dotey who has a list of charges to answer to. Meanwhile - parents were outraged no one called them about the lockdown until after it happened.

"Very angry right now and I'm not the only parent," Pamela Terrebonne, who has kids in Springfield schools, explained. "Us parents up here stick together,and they should have told us something about this going on."

Dotey was spotted by the woods near the school sometime between 8:00 and 8:45 Monday morning.

"When I dropped off my two daughters, as soon as, I pulled out the gate four or five trooper cars pulled in real quick," Marty Kobitz, father of two Springfield elementary students, described. "Then when I was turned around they locked up the gates and had a lockdown."

Children at Springfield Elementary School started their school week in lock down..

"One of the teachers just told us to go to our classroom. They just said we have a lock in," Tamora Hills, a kindergartener at the school, said.

Hills says students tried to stay calm and continue learning.

Outside dozens of worried parents started to arrive.

When they got to the school they saw choppers, deputies, and locked gates.

No one would tell parents what was going on.

"We didn't hear nothing until my daughter went to the store, and she's the one who passed here told us that the schools were on lockdown," Terrebonne noted.

Then parent's got a shocking phone message from the parish school board letting them know about the search.

Some parents say they didn't get the automated phone call until 10:00 Monday morning, and they say that's too long to wait to find out if their kids were safe.

Terrebonne, couldn't believe the lack of communication,"We need to get better people on the school board and let the parents know what was going on."

Other parents say the school and deputies were just keeping kids safe.

"The positive thing is I'd rather be lockdown letting no body in. Because, otherwise It'd have tons of parents going in there grabbing their kids we'd have mayhem," Kobitz said.

Eventually parents got the ok to get their kids, and area schools finished the day on partial lock down.

Deputies say Dotey never was on school grounds. Deputies arrested Dotey this evening. For more on that story click here.[1]